


A Piece of the Night

by almostannette, Binary_Sunset



Category: Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them (Movies)
Genre: (it's Credence guys it's gonna get dark), Adult Credence Barebone, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - Vampire, Child Abuse, M/M, Manipulative Gellert Grindelwald, Mary Lou Barebone is Her Own Warning, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, POV Alternating
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-09-28
Updated: 2018-01-20
Packaged: 2019-01-06 13:15:47
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 6
Words: 20,210
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12212025
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/almostannette/pseuds/almostannette, https://archiveofourown.org/users/Binary_Sunset/pseuds/Binary_Sunset
Summary: When Percival Graves moved to the suburbs, all he was expecting was a nice, quiet life. Though, of course, nothing is ever easy for him. Now he has to deal with a strict landlord, a job that requires him to be up all night, and a mysterious, troubled young man who's definitely hiding something.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Hey everyone! This is Binary_Sunset and almostannette here to welcome you to this ridiculous thing we’ve created. Binary_Sunset will be writing Graves’ chapters (the odd-numbered ones) and almostannette will be writing Credence’s (the even-numbered ones).  
> The moodboard edits at the start of this chapter and the next are Sunset’s doing, and you’re welcome to reblog them from [his tumblr](https://binary-suunset.tumblr.com/post/165837273969/made-a-couple-cheeky-little-moodboards-for-my) if you are so inclined.

 

  


Percival Graves was often surprised at just how easy it was to pack up his things, shove them in the back of his car, and simply drive away from the world he’d known for the past ten years.

It wasn’t an uncommon thing for him. In fact, he did it a lot. Every few years, once things started to get stale, he’d pack up his things and simply leave.

Though, this move was different. This time, he’d actually managed to get into some proper trouble in Las Vegas, which is why he hadn’t bothered to rent a U-Haul.

He _did_ feel a bit bad about having to leave some things behind, like his houseplants and most of his book collection. Though, Queenie had graciously accepted the former, and the latter had made a lovely donation to the local library, so he couldn’t complain too much.

Percival was always forever thankful when, on these cross-country trips, the dense cornfields of America's heartland had started to fade out into the grey cityscapes he’d long been accustomed to. He hated driving through farmland. It was always the same goddamn thing for miles, and even though Percival didn’t tire easily, he was still able to be bored out of his damn mind.

 

* * *

 

It was a bright, sunny day when he finally reached his destination.  Percival was surprised to find that the keys to his half of the duplex had been placed in a Ziploc bag beneath the doormat.

The inside of the house was roomy, and already came with a few essentials: a refrigerator, an oven, even a microwave. It was nice not to have to somehow squish all of his appliances into his Prius.

After inspecting the space, Graves popped the trunk and started unloading a few boxes from the car. He started with the basics: bedding, clothes and hangers, the dregs of his book collection. The things he really couldn't live without.

It was as he was unloading that final box that he felt a pair of eyes on him. Graves turned around slowly, locking eyes with a slight boy of perhaps eighteen. Despite actions clearly taken to diminish it, there was a strange sort of beauty to him. Black hair that would probably be quite soft and beautiful, had it not all been cropped into a bowl cut, a plush mouth, and a keen pair of dark eyes that seemed to stare through Graves.

He remembered his landlord mentioning that she had a few children: two daughters in elementary and middle school and a son who would be graduating high school this year. She hadn't mentioned any names, and Graves figured now was as good a time as any to learn them.

He put the box he was carrying down onto the driveway. “Hey, I'm Percy. I'm going to be moving in here.” Graves extended his hand.

The young man looked at it for a moment, as if he'd forgotten what one does when a hand is extended towards them, then shook it. “Credence. I live in the other half of the duplex.” He kept his head down and spoke softly, which Graves thought was strange. Most boys his age felt on top of the world, but Credence seemed to want to have as little of a presence as possible. Which was a shame, really, because Graves had a feeling there was quite a sharp mind behind that pretty face.

Still, he was definitely the landlord’s son, which meant Graves should probably stop thinking of him that way.

“What, uh, brought you into the neighbourhood?” Credence asked, taking Graves out of his thoughts.

“Job transfer.” It wasn't a total lie. He _had_ gotten a new job since leaving Vegas. “I’ll be working as a lab technician at Emerson Hospital.”

“Oh, uh, that's a good choice, then. Since it's not far from here.” He eyed Graves’ car, as if expecting someone to walk out of it. “Most people move here for the public schools. Other than that there's not much to do around here. It's the suburbs. No nightlife, you know?”

Graves shrugged. “I work the graveyard shift, so that's not exactly a problem. When you work from ten to seven, there's not exactly too much time to go out. Which is part of why I left Vegas, I think.”

Credence’s eyes widened. “Does Ma know you used to live in Las Vegas?”

Graves laughed. “Yeah, she wasn't the biggest fan of it at first, but as long as I promised to follow her rules, she was more than willing to rent the place out to me.”

“No parties, no girls, no drunken antics,” Credence recited with a dry laugh. “You realise she _will_ evict you if you break those, right?”

“Like I said, I don't get out much,” he said with a shrug. He would have preferred a landlord who just let him pay the rent and didn't ask questions, but he couldn't find anywhere else on such short notice.

Credence looked back at the pile of boxes in the trunk. “Do you need any help with those?”

“Please. There's only so much I can carry on my own.”

Credence grabbed one of the boxes from the trunk and attempted to lift it, before immediately putting it back. “Uh, are there any that are a little lighter?”

“The one on the far left should be, yeah. It's just some desk supplies.” Graves knelt down and picked up his box from the driveway. “I'll get that one on my way out.”

With Credence’s help, the Prius was empty in about half an hour. The boy was visibly panting, leaning against the car for support.

Graves knew he should do something to thank him. It was nice to finally have all of his stuff in one place so he could start unpacking properly, and it wasn't every day a near-complete stranger offered to help him move.

“I don't have much to offer in the way of food, but if you wanted, I could take you out on the town and--”

“And _what_ , Mister Graves?”

It was a familiar voice, one he’d been hearing over the phone for the past few days now. And from the way Credence tensed, he recognised it too.

It was Mary Lou Barebone, who must've come home while he and Credence were unloading the car. She was leaning out of an open window, clearly listening in on their conversation.

“You know your lease here is only valid as long as you behave yourself.”

He felt a distinct dislike of the woman well up in his mind, but he pushed it back. “Your son has been helping me move in since he came home from school. I appreciate it and was just going to offer to buy him a coffee,” he explained. “It seems like you've raised him well. Most of my own adult friends refuse to ever help me move.”

It wasn't the whole truth, of course. He had been looking forward to spending time with Credence for reasons that were much less wholesome, but Mary Lou didn't need to know that. Besides, it wasn't like he was planning on jumping the boy at the first moment he could. Graves had self control, and with Credence being so young, he was mostly planning on keeping his attraction to himself.

“Well, I'm afraid Credence can't go with you. He has far too many chores and schoolwork to catch up on.”

Graves looked at Credence, who was still tense. His shoulders were hunched even more and he was keeping his head down, even avoiding eye contact.

Graves tried his best to get onto eye level with the boy. “Some other time, then? I really owe you one.”

He nodded silently, then went into the house.

Well that was… strange. The whole interaction had reeked of manipulation, and it rubbed Percy in every wrong way.

Although, to be fair, he was only getting a portion of the story. It was possible that Credence had a habit of sneaking out with older men and abandoning his house and school work. Maybe she really did have a good reason to be upset. Besides, from Mary Lou’s perspective, he was just some stranger trying to get her son into his car. Not exactly the best first impression he could be making.

Regardless of the fact that there were perfectly rational explanations for everything that was happening, it still didn't sit right with him. Something in her tone and the way Credence had reacted just gnawed at his stomach.

 

* * *

 

Graves hadn't slept that night. He spent the wee hours of the night decorating his house and putting the finishing touches on everything. Deciding what photos to hang up, where to display various keepsakes, that sort of thing. After a while, it was really beginning to feel like somewhere he could call home.

He laid down on his bed, freshly made with his favourite pair of sheets, and thought for a moment. He really should apologise to Mary Lou. Sure, the woman was strict and a bit strange, but it wouldn’t do well to have a bad relationship with his landlord. Despite his (mostly) pure intentions, he’d still done something to make her uncomfortable and fear for her only son. That certainly warranted at least a little bit of consideration on his part.

He decided he should probably visit around dinner, before his shift at the hospital was set to start, and give her a proper apology.

It was about five in the afternoon when Graves finally knocked on Mary Lou’s door. The woman swung the door open almost violently, only to have her face soften when she recognised Graves.

“Mister Graves! What are you doing here?” She sounded genuinely surprised.

“I wanted to apologise for yesterday. I know what it looked like, and I wanted to assure you that I didn't mean anything untoward. That's not the kind of person I am and I want you to know that.”

Mary Lou sighed. “Come into the sitting room. It's getting dark.”

He'd meant for this to be a short visit, but if she wanted to chat, who was Graves to say no?

She lead him into the sitting room, where she poured a glass of wine for herself and took a seat on a drab, gray couch. Graves took a seat on an armchair opposite her.

“I hope you understand, that wasn't the first impression I'd want for you either.” She took a sip. “It's not easy, raising a boy like Credence. I hope you understand that. I probably should have explained what to expect before you got here, but the lease was signed so quickly, it completely slipped my mind.”

Graves shifted in his seat. All he’d wanted was a nice, quiet place to live. This wasn't at all what he’d signed up for. “What did you mean to tell me, ma’am?”

“Credence. There’s something wrong with that boy. I've known it since the moment we brought him home.” She downed the rest of the glass and poured another one for herself. “He's not mine, you see. All of my children are adopted, and Credence came from an especially egregious situation. He was surrendered to the state at four. His mother was an immoral woman and his birth father was out of the picture. He was in the system for almost a decade by the time I adopted him and… I don't know if it was the foster homes or his upbringing, but he's been… I think ‘difficult’ might be the best way to put it.”

Graves raised an eyebrow. Credence had been nothing but polite and respectful to him that afternoon. “Difficult how?”

“He has a tendency to…” She clutched the cross she wore around her neck and leaned in close, her voice little more than a whisper. “He drives men to sin, that boy. I don't know it's because he grew up without a father, but he's always caused men to stray from the path of heaven. I hadn't quite realised it while I was discussing the lease with you, but you're precisely the sort of man he tends to target.”

Oh. Well that made a disturbing amount of sense.

And it wasn't that Graves didn't like Credence in that way. If he’d offered himself up to Graves, he certainly wouldn't have said no. But he didn't just want to be another notch in the boy’s belt, a particularly good fuck to brag about in the lunchroom among his friends. Graves had no illusions about the way Credence had probably seen him. In his mid-thirties, muscular, handsome, the sort of person someone into older men would definitely go after.

But if he was honest with himself, that's not just what he wanted to be. He didn't want to be just another shag, whether it was to fill some psychological need or just to rebel against his mother, Graves didn't want to be used that way. And if they did fool around and Mary Lou found out…

He doubted things would end up well. Even if it _was_ a mess he could get himself out of, he didn't want to take chances.

He nodded at Mary Lou. “I understand. I'll keep an eye on him for you. I won't fall for his tricks.”

The woman just shook her head. “No, he's quite clever, though he may not seem it.” She sighed. “Honestly, Mister Graves, sometimes the boy is so crafty he could probably give the Devil himself a run for his money. It would be best for you to just avoid him altogether. I know he tries to be good, but he really should be kept away from men like you, Mister Graves. _Good_ men, who shouldn't be lead astray by that boy.”

Graves wasn't quite sure how “good” he could really be considered, but he decided to just accept the compliment. “Thank you, ma’am. I should probably be heading to work soon, but I appreciate you taking the time to talk to me.”

Mary Lou nodded. “If he gives you any trouble, don't hesitate to let me know.”

“Of course.” Graves stood up from his armchair and made his leave from the house.

After briefly stepping into his house to change into his work clothes, he hopped into his car and drove into the night.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you to everyone who commented or left kudos - you are amazing! <3

  
      

Credence had been holed up in his room, trying to finish an essay for English which was due the next day. His mind drew a blank, though. He’d been at it for half an hour and had barely managed to write a full paragraph, because his thoughts kept straying back to the new neighbor, Mr. Graves, or Percy, as he’d introduced himself.

Credence closed his eyes for a moment and recalled the man’s appearance, the way his arm muscles had flexed as he had carried a particularly heavy box towards the house. Everything had been going so well, Percy had even offered to take him out for a cup of coffee. If Ma had just arrived five minutes later...He was fantasizing about his neighbor, Credence realized. His face grew warm and his back twinged with phantom pain, reminding him of the consequences if Ma found out what he was thinking.

He shook his head in a weak attempt to clear his thoughts and focus on his essay, when he heard the characteristic sound of the door to his room being opened. Immediately, Credence tried to appear as though he had been thoroughly immersed in his work before Ma had come in.

“Yes?” He turned to her and shivered involuntarily, as he saw the small, seemingly innocuous smile that played around the corners of Ma’s mouth.

“Do you know who’s just been over for a visit?” Ma asked him. “Our new neighbor, Mr. Graves.”

His blood turned to ice and it took all his willpower to remind himself that Ma had not suddenly developed the power to read minds. He could still get out of this unscathed, if he tried. “Oh?” he asked. “Has there been a problem with the house?”

“I’m not blind, Credence,” she said. “I’ve seen the way you were looking at him. You know I will never tolerate such behavior under my roof again.”

He wanted to say something, but his voice failed him. Helplessly, he watched as Ma narrowed her eyes.

“This is the only warning you’ll get, Credence,” she threatened. “If you try anything with this man, you will be punished. You remember what happened last time, don’t you?”

“I do, Ma” he whispered. “I won’t try anything.”

“Good,” she concluded. “I hope you learned your lesson, Credence,” she added in a low voice before she left his room again.

Credence waited a few seconds to make absolutely sure that she wasn’t trying to come back in. Only when he heard her footsteps descending the stairs did he let out a shaky breath. That had been close. He knew he should forget all about Percy, it wasn’t like he would want anything from Credence anyway. The man had probably just been too polite to decline his offer of helping to carry the boxes inside.

Downcast, Credence ran a hand through the choppy, ugly bowl cut he sported as of late. Ma had been right when she’d given it to him. Nobody was going to look at him and feel any sort of attraction now, not when he looked like a freak. Certainly not Percy, who might be the most handsome man Credence had ever met.

With a sigh, he put down his pencil and rubbed his eyes. Who was he kidding? He couldn’t concentrate on his essay now, anyway. He snuck down the stairs, checking that Ma was sitting in the living room, watching the news, before he went into the kitchen and selected an apple as after-dinner snack.

Credence was about to leave the kitchen again, when he paused. Percy had just left the house and walked to his car. He’d promised Ma he wouldn’t try anything, but there was no harm in looking, right? Credence took another bite of his apple, but forgot to chew when Percy’s head suddenly turned right towards the kitchen window. Shit, had he spotted him? Credence shrunk back from the window and tried to catch his breath. It was pure coincidence, he told himself. Just as Ma couldn’t read thoughts, Percy couldn’t have known that Credence was watching him.

He shivered and slowly made his way out of the kitchen, telling himself that he’d been feeling nervous and on edge all day, he’d simply overreacted.

Unfortunately, Ma had seen him in the hallway and her face took on an expression of profound dissatisfaction as she spotted the half-eaten apple in his hand. She stood up from the couch and walked over to him, her lips pressed into a thin line, evidently disapproving of him. “You know I don’t like it when you eat in your room,” she complained. “How many times do I have to tell you until you finally remember it?”

“I’m sorry,” he said and averted his eyes.

Ma tsked. Suddenly, her hand shot forward and grabbed his forearm to hold him back.

Credence suppressed a wince as her already vise-like grip tightened even more, hard enough to leave bruises.

“If I hear any complaints from Mr. Graves about you,” she began. “Or if I find out you’ve been bothering him, I’ll be very disappointed. Last time, I was lenient, because of your unnatural upbringing, but you won’t get away as easy if you make the same mistake again. Do you understand?”

“Yes,” Credence whispered.

Ma sent a last, distrustful glare into his direction, before she released his arm and let him retreat to his room.

 

* * *

 

The next morning, Credence had to put on a long-sleeved shirt to hide the marks Ma’s fingers had left on his arm. Breakfast was even more awkward and tense than was usual in the Barebone household. Credence could tell Ma was watching him with eagle-eyes at all times, just waiting for him to slip up.

He was determined to not give her any additional reasons to be wary of him. After they all had finished eating, Credence was quick to do the dishes and tidy the kitchen. Perhaps, if he was on his best behavior, she would forgive him for helping Percy the day before yesterday? At least he wasn’t being punished. Ma just eyed him with a displeased expression as he worked.

As Credence passed Percy’s house on his way to school, he was acutely aware that Percy’s car was standing in the driveway. A part of him wanted nothing more than to run up to the house, knock on the door and tell Percy not to believe any of the lies Ma had probably told him about Credence. Another part of him remembered Percy worked the night-shift at the hospital. It would be rude to interrupt him and anyway, he was already late for school.

During his classes, Credence couldn’t pay attention, because he kept imagining what he was going to say to Percy, if he could speak to him without having to fear that Ma would interrupt. Since Credence didn’t have friends at school (or elsewhere, to be honest), it was a lonely experience.

The day progressed like any other. The last period was science, with Mr. Scamander. Even though he struggled with the subject, usually Credence at least tried to complete the assigned work for this class on time, because Mr. Scamander would end up giving him vaguely disappointed looks if he didn’t. It always made Credence’s stomach twist, like he was betraying someone who had not yet written him off as a lost cause.

Credence took his seat towards the back of the classroom and tried to concentrate on Mr. Scamander’s lecture. It was difficult, not least of all because Mr. Scamander mumbled more than he actually spoke aloud, but taking a seat at the front of the class was too daunting. As the lesson went on, Credence barely retained anything of what had been said. His messy notes were going to be completely useless, he knew.

He suppressed a frustrated groan and decided he needed to speak with Percy this afternoon, if only to get some peace of mind again.

Eventually, the lesson ended. Credence gathered his things and was about to leave the classroom, when Mr. Scamander called his name.

Credence slowly turned around. “Yes?” he asked quietly, clutching his notebook to his chest.

Mr. Scamander gestured for him to come to the front of the room and Credence approached the red-headed teacher with trepidation. Had he done something wrong?

After the last student had left the classroom, Mr. Scamander began to speak. “How are you doing, Credence?”

“Fine,” he said evasively.

“Have you thought about my suggestion from last week?” Mr. Scamander went on. “About seeing the school counselor? I believe talking to Gellert could help you a lot.”

“If I talked to the counselor, Ma would...,” Credence replied, but cut himself off in time. “I mean,” he was quick to correct himself, “I don’t need that kind of help.”

Mr. Scamander gave him a look that Credence easily identified as pity and he clenched his jaw.

“I apologize,” the teacher said. “I didn’t want to offend you.”

Credence awkwardly shuffled his feet. “You didn’t,” he said quietly and bit the inside of his cheek. “May I go now?”

“Of course,” Mr. Scamander answered. “Have a good day, Credence.”

Credence bit back a huff and instead ducked his head. “You too, Mr. Scamander,” he murmured and made his way out of the classroom. He shouldered his old backpack and began to head home. The talk with Mr. Scamander had cost him precious time. If he wanted to get home with enough time to talk to Percy, he needed to hurry.

By the time he’d reached Percy’s house, he was panting slightly and had begun to sweat. His cheeks felt flushed, too. Not the ideal circumstances for a conversation with Percy, but he didn’t have the time to go home, take a shower and change his outfit.

Credence glanced left and right, took a deep breath and walked up to Percy’s front door. Tense and nervous as he was, he raked his fingers through his hair, in an attempt to make it look a little less atrocious. Before he could change his mind, he rang the doorbell and waited, anxiously shifting his weight from one foot to the other.

He didn’t have to wait long until the door was opened. Percy looked like he hadn’t been expecting guests. His hair was not in the slicked back style it had always been before, but hung into his face, and Credence banished all thoughts he had of running his fingers through it for now in favor of focusing on the conversation.

“Credence?” Percy asked and squinted at him. “What are you doing here?”

“Percy...Mr. Graves,” he began uncertainly. “Can we talk inside, please?”

Percy gave him a wary look, but stepped aside to let him into the house. Credence smiled at him, relieved, and slipped through the door.

“Does your mother know that you’re here?” Percy asked as he closed the door behind them.

“No,” Credence shook his head. “And she mustn’t find out.”

At this, Percy raised an eyebrow and crossed his arms in front of his chest. “If you’re here because I said I’d take you out for coffee, then I’m sorry, but that offer is no longer standing,” he said in a clipped voice.

Credence blinked and shrank back a little, hurt and confused. Percy had been so nice to him just a few days ago. What had Ma told him about Credence that prompted this change in attitude? “It was not about that, actually,” he said. “I just wanted to…”

Percy held up a hand to silence him. “From what your mother told me, it was to be expected that you’d show up again and try to make a move,” he began a bit awkwardly. “I won’t pretend I’m not flattered, but I don’t want you to get in trouble with your mother. No offense intended, Credence, but it would be better for both of us if you left.”

Credence blinked. So Percy didn’t want to have anything to do with him anymore? He swallowed around the lump in his throat. “I wanted to apologize because Ma was nasty to you the other day,” he said quickly and watched Percy closely to gauge his reactions. “She treated you unfairly and I’m sorry. She can get a bit...protective, at times.”

Percy’s eyes narrowed and he mumbled something that sounded suspiciously like ‘She’s got a damn good reason, doesn’t she?’ to Credence’s ears.

“Look,” his neighbor spoke up again. “Your mother told me that you go after men my age, that that’s a thing you do all the time. You’re cute, I’ll give you that, but I’m not going to risk my lease, okay?”

“What?!” Credence gasped. “She said that?” It was not hard to guess where Ma was coming from, but Credence would have never imagined that she’d go ahead and tell their new neighbor a story blown so out of proportion. “It’s not like that,” he blurted out, in a desperate attempt to get Percy to believe his side of the story. “I had a fling with someone, but that was all. Ma thinks being gay is a sin, that’s why she doesn’t like me.” He kept his head bowed down, not quite brave enough to look up and meet Percy’s eyes. “I really only wanted to apologize,” he said. “I mean, I’d be stupid if I thought _I_ could seduce _you_ , right?”

Percy was silent for a few moments and Credence shrank back, not knowing what to expect. With Ma, at least, silence was never a good sign.

“I believe you,” Percy said at last and his eyes flickered down Credence’s body for a moment. “ That was her, wasn’t it?”

Confused, Credence followed Percy’s gaze and he could have slapped himself for his own thoughtlessness as he saw what Percy was looking at. There, easy to recognize on the pale skin of his forearm were the dark, finger-shaped bruises, where Ma had grabbed him too roughly the night before. He had thoughtlessly rolled up his sleeves when he’d started to feel hot and sweaty on the way home.

Credence felt his face burning with shame. Percy wasn’t supposed to know...He quickly yanked his sleeve down and tried to get to the door, mumbling some hasty excuses.

The older man’s hand fell heavy on his shoulder, holding him back. “Wait a moment, please.”

Credence froze, feeling a bizarre mixture of fluster, embarrassment and anticipation.

“If you ever need a place to stay, or just someone to talk to, you’re more than welcome to come to me,” Percy said firmly. “I promise you will be safe here.”

Credence nodded, wondering if Percy realized the magnitude of his offer, but started when he remembered the time. “Ma is going to get home soon,” he said. “I need to go.”

He was halfway through the door when he remembered to thank Percy for offering his support. As he entered his house and went up to his room, one thing became very clear to Credence. It was going to be much harder to stop thinking about Percy than he’d previously assumed.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> An update to our vampire story just before Halloween? You betcha!

Percy had been unusually distracted all night at work. He’d left blood samples spinning in the centrifuge for far too long, almost forgotten to put a few samples in the refrigerator, and found himself forgetting what he was doing halfway through his lab procedures.

He couldn’t stop thinking back to Credence. He’d certainly been around for a while, but nothing made his skin crawl quite so much knowing what was going on in the other half of his duplex. The fact that there was a mother hurting her son, maybe even the rest of her children, and there was very little he could do about it.

And just to make things worse, he’d sided with the abuser.

He’d considered calling the police, of course, even child protective services, but if Mary Lou could fool _him_ , she’d certainly have no trouble fooling authorities as well. Surely she’d figure out that Graves had been responsible, she seemed a clever and especially paranoid woman. And even if she didn’t, if Graves was still in the clear, she’d still hurt Credence or his sisters and take her anger out on them.

And those bruises on Credence’s arm... if Mary Lou was anything like the abusers Graves had known over the years, that had to only be the tip of the iceberg.

The best thing he could do right now was what he already had: try his best to be an ally to Credence. But everything else was completely out of his hands.

He went home after work and helped himself to a glass of whiskey before skimming over the local newspaper.

 

* * *

 

He’d been sipping a mug of coffee the next morning, enjoying the feeling of the early morning sun on his face, when he noticed something from the corner of his eye.

It was ungodly early, the sun had just begun to peak over the horizon, and yet there, walking out the door with a backpack slung over his shoulder, was Credence Barebone.

Why on Earth was he walking to school? There was probably a perfectly fine reason for Mary Lou not to drive him, but was there really no bus in this part of town?

Graves grabbed his car keys from the hook beside the door, before stopping to take another glance out the window that made him rethink his decision.

Mary Lou’s car was still in the driveway.

Knowing her, she was probably watching Credence like a hawk.

Well, two could play at that game, he figured.

Percy pocketed his keys, before taking a seat on the couch and finishing his coffee. He’d just started rinsing it out when he heard the sound of a car starting. He walked over to the window and watched as the car pulled into the road, in the opposite direction of Credence. He could clearly see the silhouettes of the young girls in the backseat of the car.

...Had Mary Lou forced Credence to walk as some sort of punishment? Had she found out that the young man had visited him yesterday? Credence didn’t _seem_ injured from what he could see, but he’d clearly managed to hide his bruises yesterday…

As soon as the car was out of sight, Graves rushed outside and hopped into his Prius. Once he’d backed out of the driveway, it was barely any time at all before he’d caught up to the young man, pulling over to the sidewalk.

He knew how he probably looked: he hadn’t gotten around to combing his hair yet today, and his outfit consisted mainly of a grey pair of sweatpants and an old, threadbare AC/DC shirt with the sleeves cut off. It was a “lay around the house” outfit at best, and a “I was hungover until a few minutes ago” outfit at worst. He just hoped that no one would think this was a kidnapping.

Graves lowered the window. “Hey Credence!”

The boy’s head perked up, like he’d barely noticed the car pulling up to him. “Hey, what are you doing here?”

“I was heading out to run some errands and figured we were both going the same direction. Would you like a ride?”

Credence scanned his surroundings before walking right up to Graves’ window. “Does my Ma..?” his voice was low, like if he spoke too loudly the woman would somehow hear.

Graves shook his head. “I made sure to wait until after she left to pull out. She has no way of knowing unless one of us tells her.”

Credence nodded. “Okay. Yeah. That sounds good.”

“The passenger door is unlocked.”

Taking one last scan of his surroundings, as if checking for witnesses, Credence rounded the front of the car before hopping into the seat beside him and fastening his seatbelt.

Graves took a quick look over his shoulder before pulling back into traffic. “So, any music suggestions? I have Spotify.”

“Ma doesn’t really let us listen to most music. She thinks non-Christian music is a bad influence.”

Graves raised an eyebrow. “Well, if you don’t put something on, we’ll have to listen to all my Old Man Music. And I can assure you that Van Halen would probably make your good Christian ears bleed.”

“Go ahead and play it. If I hear one more song about how much I should love Jesus, I’ll probably spontaneously combust.”

“Just remember that you asked for it.” Percy pressed a few buttons on the touch screen display and a loud, thumping guitar riff can streaming from the speakers. He turned the volume down so the two of them could still chat.

“You used to live in Las Vegas, you listen to music that glorifies the devil, and I don’t think I’ve ever seen you wear sleeves. How on _Earth_ did my mother _ever_ let you rent from us?”

“I paid for three months in advance.” Graves shrugged. “Besides, I actually _do_ plan on following the lease rules.”

“Except the part where she said not to talk to me.”

“Best we don’t get caught, then.”

From the corner of his eye, Graves could see that Credence had hung his head in… what? Shame? There was nothing for him to be ashamed of.

“Honestly, even if we do, I can go live somewhere else; it’s not the end of the world. And I’ll still try and help you out when I can.”

Credence cocked his head. “...why would you do that?”

“Because you’re clearly in a bad situation, and any decent human being would try and help.”

“...you weren’t running errands, were you?” He looked out the windshield before pointing out a side road. “Take that left.”

“Not exactly no.” He flipped his turn signal. “But, I _have_ been meaning to buy myself some new houseplants, and I couldn’t just let you walk alone like that in good conscious. So I figured, yanno, kill two birds with one stone.”

“It’s not so bad. Walking, I mean. You get used to it after a while.”

“But you shouldn’t have to. I saw your sisters in the car with your mom.”

“That’s different. Their school is on her way to work. Mine isn’t.”

Graves looked over on the right side of the road. “Wait, isn’t that it?”

Credence quickly glanced out the window. “Yeah, it is.”

Percy pulled into the school parking lot. “That took me…” He glanced at the clock. “Maybe ten minutes.”

The young man’s face suddenly paled. “Oh.” It was little more than a breath, and then he fell silent.

The silence hung in the air like a thick fog. Graves couldn’t imagine what Credence was thinking, only that it couldn’t be good. He let it last for a few moments, before putting an arm around the boy’s shoulders.

“Hey. If you want, I can drive you to school from now on.”

Credence shook his head. “I can’t… I can’t ask you to do that for me.”

“You aren’t asking, I’m offering. And don’t you worry about your mother, okay? I can’t promise that nothing bad will happen to you, but… I _can_ promise that I’ll do everything in my power to protect you.”

“But what about you? You said you work late. Aren’t you tired?”

“Sleep is for the weak.”

That got a little chuckle out of Credence.

“Seriously, though, don’t worry about my well being, alright? If I find that it isn’t working out, I’ll let you know.” He gave the boy’s hair an affectionate ruffle. “Besides, kiddo, you _are_ fun to talk to. So getting to chat with you for a few extra minutes a day is pretty nice.”

Okay, the compliments and touches were getting to be a bit much. He _should_ probably dial it back before things go too far but…

It was so nice to see Credence happy.

And when, in that moment, he looked at Percy, so grateful there were fucking _tears_ in his eyes, he knew it was worth it.

“Thank you.”

Credence slung his backpack over his shoulder and opened the door.

“Hey, wait, what time does school get out?” Graves asked.

“The last bell rings at two fifteen.”

“I’ll meet you right here at two fifteen, then.”

Credence laughed, a couple tears running down his face with the force of it. Graves realised he’d never heard him do that before. And sure, right now it was more of a response to shock than one of genuine joy, but someday…

Someday, he decided, he wanted to hear Credence laugh for real.

The young man wiped the tears away with the sleeve of his shirt. “Yeah. Yeah, I’ll see you at two fifteen. Thank you.”

“Don’t worry about it. Just do well in school today, okay?”

Credence nodded. “Okay.” He readjusted his backpack and started towards the door to the school.

Graves watched from his rearview mirror until he disappeared inside the building. He was safe, at least for the next few hours, and that’s all that mattered right now.

He leaned down and was ready to start the car up again when he heard a voice just outside his door?

“Excuse me? Are you Credence’s guardian?”

Graves looked over and locked eyes with a tall man with wild red hair and too many freckles to count. He spoke in a clear, chipper English accent, which Graves found a bit curious. Credence went to a public school in the suburbs. Why import a teacher from overseas?

It certainly wasn’t anyone he’d recognise, but that really didn’t mean anything, considering how new he was to the neighbourhood. But there was no reason to lie, so he just told the truth.

“No, I’m just his neighbour. I was running some early morning errands and decided to give him a ride to school. How do _you_ know him?”

The man straightened. “I’m his physics teacher. Newt Scamander. I don’t suppose he’s mentioned me at all.”

Graves shifted uncomfortably in his seat. “I can’t say he has, no. But I’m also new in town, so I haven’t really gotten too close to him.”

“Yes well…” Newt ran a nervous hand through his hair. “Look, I won’t lie to you. I’m worried about him.  He’s very withdrawn, he doesn’t seem to have any close friends, and I’ve seen the bruises he tries to hide. I’m sure you’ve seen them too.”

Graves nodded slowly, trying to see where Newt was going with this. “I have.”

“I mean, I’ve tried to do everything I can to help him, but it’s not easy. There’s only so much I can do as a teacher, and he doesn’t seem to trust me enough to let me know what’s going on.” He paused for a moment, stopping to think. “What I’m trying to say is, when I saw you, I thought it was nice to see that he had someone looking out for him. And I also had something to ask you.”

“Alright, then. Ask away.”

“I’ve been trying to get him to see the school counselor. It’s clear he’s going through something, and I think his mental health is starting to affect his grades. But he’s just not listening. And he won’t tell me what’s stopping him from seeking help. So I figured I should at least ask if you’d be willing to talk with him about it. I’m sure his reasons are good but..”

“It’s not easy seeing someone go through something like that on their own,” Graves finished.

“Exactly. Our counseling department is excellent, and I’ve seen them help kids out before. And if he’s really against it for whatever reason, that’s something I can live with, but I at least want to make sure he can discuss it with someone for more than a few minutes.”

Graves nodded. “I’ll talk to him. If anything, I think it’d be nice to know that _someone_ in his life has his best interests in mind.”

Newt beamed. “Thank you.” He took a look at his watch. “Well, I should probably get going before I’m late to my own class. I really can’t thank you enough, Mister…”

“...Graves. But please call me Percy.”

“Alright, then. Percy it is. Also, uh, if you ever wanted anyone to show you around town, you could give me a shout.” He looked at his watch again and blanched. “I’ll give you my number some other time, I really _do_ have to go.”

Within an instant, he took off like a shot towards the door.

Graves laughed to himself. Newt seemed like a strange man, but at least he was trying to help. At least he wasn’t the only one who cared about Credence.

 

* * *

  

He ended up back in the school parking lot again, though this time he’d got caught in traffic with everyone else who was picking up a student. After moving at a snail’s pace to the front of the school, he caught sight of Credence and pulled over so the young man could get into the passenger seat.

“I can't believe you actually came to pick me up,” Credence said, clicking his seat belt into place.

Graves shrugged. “I promised, didn’t I?”

“Yeah, but…” Credence cut himself off. “Anyway, how was grocery shopping?”

He chuckled. “Yeah, about that…”

Credence raised an eyebrow. “You didn’t just spend all your money on junk food did you?”

“No, worse that that. I just bought houseplants. I didn’t even need food.”

“You went to a grocery store at the crack of dawn to buy yourself some houseplants?”

Graves felt himself frown. “I know it’s a bit silly, but I had to leave most of mine behind when I moved. They really liven up the place.”

“Yeah, lively is really the word I associate with plants. I’d really like to party with a ficus.”

“I didn’t buy a ficus. I bought a cactus and a pot of African Violets because I’m not a 40-year-old housewife who wants to spice up her living room.”

Graves pulled into their shared driveway.

Credence unbuckled his seatbelt and started to get out of the car. “I guess I’ll see you tomorrow, huh?”

Graves looked at Credence, then back at the house. Something gnawed in the pit of his stomach that told him Credence shouldn’t be going back there.

“When does your mom get home?” he finally asked.

“Usually around four thirty. She picks the girls up from their after school programme and then comes back here.”

“It’s two thirty now. And I still owe you coffee. Will you do me the honour of coming home with me?”

Credence opened his mouth and then immediately shut it. “What if she sees us together?”

“You don’t have to stay for too long. I’ll let you know when it’s three thirty, and then you can go home and there will be a whole hour between when you’re back in the house and when your mom gets home.” And if for some reason she did come home unusually early, Graves was sure he could handle her.

“Alright then.” He opened the door to his side of the car. “Lead the way.”

Percy unlocked the front door to his house and ushered Credence inside. “How do you take your coffee?”

The young man cocked his head. “Oh? Are you making it for me?”

“It's to thank you for helping me move in. The least I could do is make it for you.” He lead Credence into the kitchen and pulled out a chair for him at the table. He hadn't intended to do so, but it seemed some old hosting instinct ingrained within him was rearing its ugly head.

Credence flushed before sitting down. If he was uncomfortable, he didn't say anything. “Oh, thank you! I usually take it pretty light and with more sugar than I probably should.”

Percy opened the refrigerator, checking to see what he had. “Is skim milk okay?”

“That sounds fine, I’m not picky.”

Graves made the coffee and poured it into two mugs. He put one in front of Credence and took the seat opposite him.

“So, how’s school going?” he asked, taking a sip of the coffee.

Credence blew the steam away from his drink. “Oh it’s… it’s high school. You know.”

Graves chuckled. “Do I? It’s been a long time since I was in school.” He took another sip. “Look, I’ll be honest here. After I dropped you off, I had a word with your physics teacher.”

Credence tensed. “What did he say?”

“He said he was worried about you. He doesn’t know what your situation is, but he wants to help. He also mentioned that he’d asked you to consider going to the school counsellor.”

Credence shook his head. “No, I… I can’t. If Ma found out…” He trailed off, trying not to make eye contact with Graves as his eyes welled up with tears.

“Credence, you’re eighteen, aren’t you?”

He nodded as tears started running down his face. “I know I’m an adult, but I-- I just can’t alright? I don’t have anywhere to go when Ma finally decides I’m not worth keeping around, and if I’m not there to protect my sisters I don’t know what she’d do!”

Graves walked over and pulled Credence close to his chest. Maybe it was inappropriate, but seeing him, lonely and vulnerable and feeling utterly trapped, set off some instinct inside of him. He ran his fingers through the boy’s hair and gently shooshed him. “I understand. I know it’s hard, and I’m glad you feel safe telling me all this. I wasn’t going to ask you to leave, I’d never ask anything like that of you.”

Credence sniffed and wiped his face on his sleeve. “Then why..?”

Graves let him go and crouched beside him so they were on eye level. “Because now that you’re an adult, they can’t give out any information without your consent. Even if you mother asks for it.” He grabbed a couple napkins and passed them to Credence.

“Yeah, but… I have you now.” He accepted the napkins and started to wipe the tears away. “I don’t… need that sort of help. I’m not crazy.”

Graves rubbed Credence’s back. “I know you aren’t. And I want to do my best to help you. But the truth is, the most I can offer you is a safe space and companionship. The people at your school are professionals, they’ve been trained in this sort of thing and they’d know how to help better than I ever could.”

“So you think I should go?”

Graves nodded. “At the end, it’s your choice, though. And if you feel like it’s really not helping, then you don’t have to go. You have agency here. No one can force you into it.”

Credence wrapped his arms around Graves and pressed himself close. “Thank you. I don’t know what I did to deserve this.”

Graves returned his hand to Credence’s hair and continued running his fingers through it. “It’s human decency, Credence. You’ve always deserved it.”

Once the coffee was finished, they spent the remainder of the afternoon curled up on the couch watching some cartoon on Netflix. Graves had been figuring out what to watch when Credence had pointed out a title that his mother had banned him from when he was younger.

It wasn’t Percy’s taste. The humour was juvenile and the voices were a little annoying, but the image of Credence wrapped up in one of his throw blankets and smiling at the antics on screen was more than worth it.

He was really beautiful when he smiled. A genuine smile, not the sort he faked when he wanted to convince others that everything was okay. The sort of expression that lit up his features and only served to enhance the beauty that was already there.

Once the episode stopped, Graves paused the video. “Hey, I’d hate to be the bearer of bad news, but it’s time for you to go.”

Credence sighed and shed the blanket off his shoulders. He stood up and started to gather his things from the house, acting almost robotically

Graves stood beside him and put a hand on his shoulder. “Hey, you’re always welcome here. I don’t care if it’s midnight or if I’m not even home, you can stay here. Just don’t open the bottom drawer in the refrigerator. That’s where I keep my beer.”

Credence chuckled. “Alright, I won’t touch your beer.” He grabbed his backpack and slung it over his shoulder. “Seriously, though, thank you.”

“It’s like I said. I’m just doing what I can.”

“I’ll see you tomorrow, then.” And with that, he walked out the door and disappeared from Graves’ sight.

Later that night, before getting to work, Graves found himself in front of Mary Lou’s door. He gave it a couple knocks and waited patiently for Mary Lou to answer it.

It took a few minutes, but the woman opened the door to him. “Oh. Mister Graves. I was just about to start dinner.”

“Oh. I’m sorry. I was just about to head out to work, and I just needed a quick word with you about the house.”

She stepped out and closed the door behind her. “Is there something wrong?”

Graves took a breath and squared his shoulders, looking Mary Lou dead in the eye. It had been such a long time since he’d done this. “You’re not going to hurt your children anymore.”

Mary Lou’s face twisted into one of defiance and rage, but she never broken eye contact with Graves. “You’re not going to tell me how to raise my children, Graves! If I need to beat the Devil out of them, I damn well will!”

Well, she’d spoken her mind and was clearly transfixed, so that was _something_ , at least.

He took a step towards her, attempting to use the few inches he had on her for intimidation. “You’re not going to lay a finger on them.”

“I’ll do whatever I need to so I can keep those kids in line! And if you have a problem with that, I’d be more than happy than to refund the lease!”

It wasn’t working. It seemed just about impossible to get through to her. Graves was rusty, and his technique probably wasn’t the best it could be. He had to switch tactics.

“I think it would be best for you to let Credence get to know me a little.”

“Why would--”

He cut her off. “You see, Credence is acting out this way because he’s never had a real father figure in his life.” He felt the bile rise up in his throat at the familiar argument. It was archaic and disgusting, but it was probably the only thing Mary Lou would believe. “I think it would be good for him to have a stable male role model, don’t you?”

Something had softened in her expression, like a switch had flipped in her mind and all resistance was gone. “Yes.”

“And you know I’m a good man, Mary Lou. I follow your rules, I’d never do anything untoward. Don’t you think that it’d be good to let him visit me?”

“Yes.”

He took a step back, realising that he’d clearly hooked her. “Now, if you ever think back to this conversation, we talked about how the sink in the kitchen keeps getting clogged up. Do you understand?”

“Yes.”

Graves relaxed his stance and broke eye contact. “So, I found my toolbox in one of the boxes. I could probably just take everything apart myself, but I just figured I should keep you updated in case we have to call a plumber.”

Mary Lou shook her head as if trying to clear it. “And, uh, what did you say the problem was?”

“The drainpipe for the sink. I think there’s something down there that keeps clogging it up, or some sort of buildup in the trap just from normal use. I’ll take it apart tomorrow and see if I can clean it out myself.”

“That sounds fine. Please keep me updated.”

Graves smiled. “I’m so sorry for the poor timing. Thanks for coming out here. I’ll get out of your hair now, go enjoy your dinner.”

“It was nothing, Mister Graves. I think it’s quite admirable that you’re choosing to fix this yourself.”

“Well, there’s no need to call a plumber when all I have to do is clean out a pipe.” He checked the time on his phone. “Well, I should probably be heading out to work, and you should definitely be heading back inside. But I’ll be in touch.”

Graves pulled the keys from his pocket and unlocked his car. This wasn’t what he’d had in mind, but it was a start.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you enjoyed! Thank you so much to everyone who's been leaving comments and kudos


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter-specific warnings and a bonus moodboard can be found in the end notes!

The next morning, Credence felt giddy with excitement, although he tried not to show it. He had something to look forward to, for a change, and it was spending more time with Percy. It had taken Credence longer than usual to figure out what he was going to wear and he’d done everything in his power to make the bowl cut look like a semi-normal hairstyle.

On the one hand, Credence knew he was a bit delusional - Percy had told him outright that he would not risk his lease for a hookup with him. On the other hand, though, Percy had driven him to school and picked him up again, had let Credence spend time at his house and had hugged him not once, but twice. It all led Credence to believe the attraction was not entirely one-sided.

Credence grinned, but quickly masked it by taking a sip of coffee. Ma had had an argument with someone yesterday evening and it had almost morphed into a shouting match. Strangely enough, at dinner she hadn’t been in a bad mood, but had kept giving Credence suspiciously contemplative looks which had set his teeth on edge.

Everyone had finished their breakfast by now and Credence carried the plates and the cutlery to the sink. He was just about to start to do the washing-up, when his mother’s voice interrupted him.

“Credence?”

“Yes, Ma?”

“I expect you to be on your best behavior this afternoon,” she said. “Mr. Graves said he’d come over to take a look at the sink, and I might not be home yet by then.”

Credence blinked at her, not sure if he’d heard that correctly. Why had Percy offered to repair the sink when it wasn’t even broken? “The sink?” he asked, puzzled.

“It keeps getting clogged up, haven’t you noticed?” Ma replied flippantly. “Anyway, it will do you some good to spend time around Mr. Graves. You’ve never had a proper male role model in your life, and considering the ones you did have, it’s unsurprising that you...well, never mind.”

It took an enormous amount of willpower not to stare at his mother with an open mouth. Had Ma even listened to what she’d just said? He would have never gotten her approval to spend time with Percy before. It sounded too good to be true. In fact, it sounded like a trap.

“I thought you said I shouldn’t bother him?” Credence asked, choosing his words very carefully.

“Nonsense,” Ma countered. “When should I have said that? Being around a good man like him will only help you. Perhaps it’s not too late to set you straight. You know, I’ll invite him to attend church with us on Sunday.”

Severely confused, Credence promised he’d behave and then excused himself, saying he really needed to do the washing-up now, otherwise he wouldn’t be able to make it to school on time.

“What the fuck just happened?” Credence mumbled to himself once Ma was out of earshot. Credence was tempted to remind Ma that, not even a week ago, she’d practically accused Percy of trying to seduce him, when he’d only wanted to take Credence out for coffee.

Now she thought Percy was a good role model for him and that spending time with Percy might help “set him straight”? Aside from the fact that Percy seemed to be far from straight himself, if Ma really thought the company of a man who looked like sex on legs would “cure” Credence’s queerness, she was beyond help.

Credence finished washing the dishes and waited until Ma and his sisters had left. As soon as her car was out of sight, he grabbed his backpack and wandered over to Percy’s front door. Before he even had a chance to knock on the door, or ring the doorbell, the door was opened and Percy stepped outside.

He was dressed in a similarly casual fashion as yesterday. The sweatpants were the same, but today Percy had opted for a Queen T-shirt. He hadn't shaved yet, so a five-o’clock shadow was dusting his cheeks. The sight of him still made Credence’s breath catch in his chest. “I hope you're still okay with driving me to school?” he asked once he'd found his voice again.

“Good morning to you, too,” Percy replied. “And sure, hop in,” he added, gestured to his car and started walking towards it. Credence complied and got comfortable in the passenger seat.

“Any specific music request or is more Old Man Music okay?” Percy asked as he sat down in the driver’s seat.

“Come on, you’re not an old man,” Credence replied. “You’re what, 35?”

The only response he got from Percy was a dry chuckle as he fiddled with the touch screen. A song Credence didn’t recognize started playing and even hearing the first few notes of it was enough to determine that Ma wouldn’t approve of this song either.

“Ma said you offered to fix the sink in our kitchen?” Credence asked as Percy started the car. “Why? The sink isn’t even broken, you know that, right? ”

Percy glanced at Credence. “Perhaps I just wanted an excuse to spend more time with you?”

His heart started to beat a little faster and he could feel the blood rush into his cheeks. “Well, it seems to have worked,” he said. “I have no idea what you said to her, but she thinks you’re ‘a good role-model’.”

“I can be very charming,” Percy replied with a lopsided grin.

“Sure,” Credence snorted. “Only Ma is usually immune to charm. What did you do?”

“A magician never reveals their secret,” Percy said in a deliberately mysterious tone of voice.

Credence sighed in mock frustration. Truth be told, he didn’t really care _what_ Percy had said to Ma, but he was thrilled that he could now hang out with Percy without having to face his mother’s wrath. “By the way, just letting you know that your charm offensive was a little too effective,” he said. “Ma wants to invite you to go to church with us.”

Percy raised an eyebrow in disbelief. “I haven’t been to church for ages,” he answered. “I’m not even sure I’d still know what to do and say.”

Credence shrugged. “Just do what everyone else is doing, too,” he replied. “And whenever the preacher says something that’s politically incorrect, nod as though you agree. It’s that sort of congregation.”

“Sounds lovely,” Percy commented sarcastically.

“I mean, you don’t have to come, of course,” Credence said quickly. “But misery loves company and I...I just thought it would suck a lot less if you came along.”

Percy contemplated it for a moment or two. “If it means so much to you, I’ll go with you,” he said.

“Thank you,” Credence answered quietly and fidgeted a little. They were very close to his school already. “I-I’ve also decided to talk to the counselor,” he added.

Percy smiled. “That’s great. Let me know if it helps, alright?” he added as he pulled into the school parking lot.

“I will.” Credence hesitated to get out of the car. There were so many things he still wanted to say, but he couldn’t find the right words. “Uh...you’ll pick me up again in the afternoon?” he asked.

“Of course, if you want me to.”

“Thank you,” Credence whispered and leaned forward to hug Percy. He pressed himself closer to the other man than was probably appropriate, but he didn’t really care. As far as Credence was concerned, his interest in Percy had never been purely platonic anyway. He hoped Percy knew that Credence wasn’t only thanking him for driving him to school, or for offering to sit through a boring church service, but for so much more. Since he’d first met Percy, Credence had hope again, hope, that everything might get better some day. In Percy’s company, Credence could immediately breathe easier. He hadn’t felt that way ever since Alex…

Credence reluctantly released Percy from the hug. “Thank you,” he said once more and picked up his backpack. Percy looked as though he wanted to say something, but was struggling to find the right words.

“Until 2:15, then,” Credence said and got out of the car, half-hoping Percy would call after him.

Instead, Percy just lifted his hand to wave at him before he drove away. Credence waved back. During the first lessons of the day, paying attention to his teachers was absolutely impossible. Instead, Credence went over his conversation with Percy again and again, especially their hug when they’d said goodbye.

English class was canceled and the school hadn't been able to get a substitute teacher, so Credence ended up with a free period. “Might as well get it over with,” Credence mumbled to himself and, instead of Mrs. Fontaine's classroom, Credence headed to the counselors’ offices.

Before he could even state why he was here and what he wanted, Mr. Grindelwald stood up and told his colleagues that he would handle this.

If Credence’s school had a hot, young teacher, then it was Gellert Grindelwald. He looked like Credence had always imagined Dorian Gray - young, blond and almost unsettlingly handsome. Unsurprisingly, Mr. Grindelwald was a frequent topic of discussion among the student body. He was European, but nobody could say where he was from exactly, his English was frustratingly accent-free. Perhaps even a greater mystery was his age, as Mr. Grindelwald had already been working at the school when Credence had started his freshman year, but still looked young enough to get carded every time he went to a bar.

Credence was a bit taken aback, but didn't protest when Mr. Grindelwald led him into a separate room, so they could talk privately.

As Credence told the counselor of his troubles at home, he became increasingly aware of the fact that Mr. Grindelwald was watching him with a strange expression. It almost looked like...hunger? Credence decided to give the counselor the benefit of the doubt and interpreted it as an eagerness to help.

It took Credence more time than he’d expected to tell Mr. Grindelwald about the abuse he suffered at the hands of his mother. He even had to stop a few times and wipe his eyes, because he got too emotional. It _had_ felt good to talk about his issues with someone who listened as attentively as Mr. Grindelwald had done.

“I’m very glad you chose to come to me with your problems,” Mr. Grindelwald said once Credence was finished. “Am I wrong in assuming that you don’t want your mother to find out about this meeting?”

“No,” Credence said and shuddered at the thought of Ma learning that he went to the counselor. “She...she’d freak out.”

Mr. Grindelwald nodded sympathetically. “So, to keep your mother from finding out, you shouldn’t speak about these meetings with anyone but me, okay? This sounds drastic, I know, but people talk and we really don’t want this to reach your mother’s ears, do we?”

Credence frowned. “Is that like doctor-patient confidentiality?” he asked.

“Clever boy,” Mr. Grindelwald remarked. “You see, if we both keep mum, nobody’s going to find out about this meeting and any future meetings, least of all your mother.”

"Okay,” Credence said. “I won’t tell anyone.” ‘Anyone’ didn’t include Percy. For one, the man already knew about Credence’s decision to seek out the counselor’s help and additionally, Credence was convinced that Percy would never snitch.

“Good,” Mr Grindelwald continued. “You may have noticed I mentioned future meetings. Your situation requires more than just one or two meetings, I think you are aware of that. I really want to help you, Credence, but unfortunately, my schedule is very packed.”

Credence started to explain that he would be happy with any other counselor, too, but Mr. Grindelwald cut him off.

“The rest of the team is…,” he hesitated. “I shouldn’t badmouth my colleagues, of course, but most of the time, they have no idea what they’re doing. With me, you’re going to be in the best hands, believe me. Let me check my schedule.”

The counselor pulled out his phone, tapped the screen a few times and grimaced. “It’s like I feared, there are absolutely no appointments available, I’m sorry.”

Credence wrapped his arms around himself. “It’s okay,” he said quickly. “I-I’m sure there are people who need those appointments more than I do.”

Mr. Grindelwald appeared torn for a moment. He bit his lip. “Credence, what I’m going to suggest now is going to sound highly unprofessional, but bear with me, please. We could meet outside of school, if you want to. Our therapy sessions would occur in a more private sphere than here at school, and, naturally, I wouldn’t demand any money from you.”

Credence’s eyes widened. “You’d do that?” he asked, incredulously. “Even if you don’t get anything in return?”

The counselor shrugged. “Your suspicion is justified, I’m not offended,” he said a little sheepishly. “I want to help you because it’s the right thing to do,” he added. “That’s compensation enough for me.”

“Okay,” Credence said, embarrassed that he’d dared to question Mr. Grindelwald’s motives.

“Have you got time this evening? I could pick you up,” the counselor offered. “I have a couple of questions, and we don't have enough time to discuss them, now.”

“Uh, yes,” Credence said. He'd have to make up a lie he could tell to Ma, perhaps something about a study group or a project for school, but he thought he could sneak away as long as it didn't get too late. They agreed on Mr. Grindelwald picking him up in the evening. Credence named a street about five minutes away from his home as a meeting point, so Ma wouldn't see him get into a random stranger’s car.

“Thank you so much, Mr. Grindelwald,” Credence said as he gathered his things. “For agreeing to meet with me even though you're so busy, I mean.”

“Don't mention it,” the counselor said. “I’m only doing my job. And please, call me Gellert.”

The bell rang and Credence stood up. “I need to get to my next lesson. Uh...until later, I guess?”

Gellert grinned and wet his lips. “Until tonight, Credence.”

His concentration didn't improve for the rest of the school day and he spent most of his time trying to think of ways he could convince his mother to let him stay out. In the end, he decided he would ask Percy to cover for him.

 

* * *

 

In the evening, Credence waited for Gellert at the agreed-upon street corner. He kept shifting his weight from one foot to the other and periodically shot nervous glances over his shoulders. His mother might not be able to spot him, but if one of their neighbors happened to drive by and recognized him, word of it might still get back to Ma.

She thought he was with Percy, learning how to repair basic household appliances. After Credence had explained his dilemma to him, Percy had readily agreed to be his cover. To Ma, Percy had spun a yarn about how a man ought to know how to make repairs around the house and that he’d gladly teach Credence right away, if Mary Lou permitted it. Ma had been delighted and Credence had allowed himself a triumphant grin because they’d managed to outsmart her.

The sun had just begun to set when an elegant luxury sedan parked not ten feet away from Credence. It reminded him uncannily of the sort of cars Uncle Henry, the loaded older brother of one of Credence’s former foster fathers, had liked to drive. The neighborhood wasn’t a poor one, but nobody was particularly rich either, and cars like that were somewhat of a rarity. However, when the driver got out of the car, Credence was stunned to discover it was none other than Gellert Grindelwald.

It made Credence wonder how a twenty-something year old, who worked as a counselor at a high school in the suburbs of New England could afford a car that practically screamed ‘money’. Perhaps he had a trust fund, the lucky bastard.

“Credence,” Gellert greeted him. “It’s good to see that you could make it.”

Credence felt completely out of place in Gellert’s car and was tied up in knots the entire time of the drive.

“Do you mind if I play some music?” Gellert asked after a long period of tense small-talk, alternating with awkward silences.

Credence said he didn't and Gellert started tapping on the large touchscreen. After a few moments, classical music filled the car. Credence’s surprise must have shown on his face.

“Wagner,” Gellert explained. “That's real music, unlike the stuff that's popular nowadays.”

Credence looked out of the car window. They were in a part of town he didn't recognize, but it looked like a bad neighborhood. Where was Gellert taking him? He'd been so overwhelmed at the promise of help, that he had completely forgotten to ask him that.

Credence got a sinking feeling like he’d made a grave mistake.

“I changed my mind,” he spoke up. “I didn't know we'd have to drive so far...Ma is going to get suspicious,” he stammered.

“But we are almost there,” Gellert insisted.

“Really?” Credence asked in a small voice.

“I promise,” Gellert replied. “I don’t have any reason to lie to you, do I?” He parked the car at the side of the road and Credence shivered as he looked out of the car. “We’re here,” the counselor said.

Credence let out a high-pitched, hysterical laugh. “What do you mean, we’re here?” he asked. “There’s nothing here but abandoned houses and dark, creepy alleys.”

“Exactly,” Gellert chuckled. “It’s perfect for what I have in mind.”

The light of a street lamp fell into the car and transformed Gellert’s handsome features into something more sinister, even demonic. Credence felt sick. “...you’re not talking about a therapy session, are you?” he whispered.

Gellert smirked and there was a mad glint in his eyes as he leaned towards Credence. “That took you long enough,” he said. “Take off your jacket, Credence.”

“What?” Credence croaked. “Why?”

“I need access, don’t I?” Gellert said. “And before you’re even thinking of trying to get out of the car, the doors are locked.”

Credence forgot to breathe for a moment. “Please,” he pleaded with the counselor. “I won’t tell anyone, I promise, but please drive me back home, I...please, I’ll do anything you want, but let me live…”

Gellert ignored his begging and instead clicked his tongue in annoyance. “I told you to take off your jacket, didn’t I?”

“I won’t,” Credence said, in a fit of defiance, and crossed his arms in front of his chest.

“Oh, you will,” Gellert said. “Take off your jacket,” he repeated.

Credence was about to protest that he wouldn’t, when his arms uncrossed themselves, unzipped his jacket and slid it off his shoulders. “What…?” he squeaked in horror. “What did you do me?”

Gellert laughed sardonically. “Hold still, Credence, and keep your mouth shut.”

Credence hardly had time to process Gellert’s words, when he was suddenly unable to move his muscles. His jaw clamped shut and he couldn’t open his mouth again. He whimpered pathetically as Gellert moved closer and put his hands on Credence’s neck. Credence had no idea what was happening. What was Gellert planning to do to him? Had he drugged Credence and was now going to rape him? Credence very nearly threw up at that thought and tried to struggle, but his limbs wouldn’t obey him.

“There’s no need to be afraid,” Gellert drawled, in a tone of voice which was not in the slightest bit reassuring. “I’m only going to feed off you a little.”

Gellert angled his head and Credence caught sight of the definitely not human teeth in his mouth. He had _fangs_. Credence wailed in terror. Somehow, Gellert must have managed to drug him and now Credence was hallucinating that Gellert was a vampire, eager to drink his blood.

Gellert pushed Credence’s head to the side and supported the back of his head with one hand, while he used the other to caress the side of his neck, in search of the place where Credence’s pulse hammered rapidly beneath his skin. He leaned in closer and Credence could feel his hot, vile breath on his neck. His fangs lightly scraped Credence’s skin at first, a cruel travesty of a kiss, before he bit down in one, decisive movement. The sharp ache as Gellert’s teeth pierced his skin made Credence groan in pain, but Gellert didn’t pay him in any mind.

Credence squeezed his eyes shut and wished he could block out his other senses, too. Being “fed off” was the most vile thing he’d ever had the misfortune of experiencing and the wet, slurping sounds Gellert produced as he fed made Credence feel nauseous.

Why hadn’t he run when he’d still been able to move? Why had he even trusted Gellert in the first place? Each and every one of his promises, all his talk of wanting to help Credence, it had been nothing but lies. It had all been a trap. He felt ashamed at having been so easy to manipulate. How could he have been so stupid to believe that somebody actually wanted to help him?

His eyes burned with tears and Credence started to recite prayers in his head, in an attempt to distract himself from the horrific reality. He’d never really believed in Ma’s God, had only ever pretended to do so in order to get into less trouble with her, but now, he couldn’t help but feel like this was his punishment for not adhering to the rules. Had he not tried to seek out help, he would have never even met Gellert.

The alleged counselor finally removed his teeth from Credence’s neck and petted his hair. “Good boy,” he murmured. It took Credence a few moments to realize what he did next, but he was licking over the wounds he must have left on his neck. Never before in his life had Credence felt so utterly powerless, not even when Ma had punished him for having an affair with a married man. Suddenly, his repulsion shifted to hate.

He hated Gellert, hated that Gellert could put his hands on Credence and take his blood, and that he had no choice but to let it happen. He hated how weak and useless he was feeling and swore that one day, he’d be able to take revenge for what Gellert had done to him.

Gellert giggled and moved away from his neck. “You’re funny,” he chuckled. “All those thoughts about revenge, that’s very cute.”

Credence’s eyes widened. Could Gellert…?

“Read minds?” he supplied. “Yes, one of the many, many perks of being a vampire,” he said and smacked his lips. “You’ve been quite entertaining to listen to, I admit, and you make a lovely donor. I’m not surprised I wasn’t the first one to notice that.” He patted Credence’s cheek with a grin. “Do you think they’re going to be angry when they discover their boy has been naughty, sneaking around with another vampire?”

Credence was still unable to move, but he discovered that he could speak again. “Please let me go,” he begged. “I have no idea what you’re talking about. I don’t know any v-vampires, I swear…”

Gellert moved back and looked into Credence’s eyes. He frowned. “You have no idea what’s going on, do you?” he said. “That can’t be your first feeding, you smell like vampire all over. Then again, my kind has ways to make you forget,” he added and grinned maliciously. “Just because you don’t remember it, doesn’t mean it didn’t happen.”

Credence squeezed his eyes shut again. This couldn’t be happening. He’d been drugged and this was a bad trip. Gellert was a criminal with a gross fetish, everyone knew that vampires didn’t really exist...

“I liked you better when you were fantasizing about vengeance,” Gellert sighed. “Pathetic, of course, but kinda cute. Anyway, when you wake up, you are not going to remember this meeting. If you think back to it later, you will recall that I picked you up, we talked for about an hour at my apartment, you thanked me for helping you and then I drove you home again. You noticed nothing out of the ordinary for the whole evening. Next Friday, you are going to meet me in my office again, so we can discuss further meetings.”

Credence was about to answer that he would never set foot in Gellert’s office again, when Gellert added: “Now, go to sleep, Credence.”

He blinked sluggishly once, twice, and then his mind went dark.

 

* * *

 

As Credence came to, he was staggering down a sidewalk in the dark. Where was he? How had he got there? He took a long look around and tried to spot a street sign. His head was spinning so much that he could not concentrate on anything - Credence thought that’s what being drunk had to feel like.

After a long second, he realized that he was not far from home. He made his way towards his house and, thoughts slow like molasses, he tried to remember how he had ended up blacking out in the first place. He’d been feeling fine when Gellert had dropped him off, and that could only have been ten minutes ago, at the very most. Why was he feeling so sick? Had he caught the flu?

Credence had reached the front door of his house and, very belatedly, remembered to pat his pockets. He breathed a sigh of relief when he found his phone, his wallet and his keys were all still there. So he hadn’t been robbed.

It took him a couple of tries to fit the key into the lock. His heart was beating rapidly and he felt as though he was going to throw up as he stepped over the threshold. Credence couldn’t wait to get into bed and sleep off whatever strange hangover he was experiencing.

He’d managed to shut and re-lock the door, but had barely taken his jacket off, when Ma was suddenly standing in the hallway with him. How had he not noticed her approaching? He hoped he could act sober long enough for her to not become suspicious.

“Where have you been?” she said deceptively calm.

“I’m sorry, Ma,” he said. “Percy and I didn’t realize it was so late. He...he had a lot of things to show me.”

His mother seemed pacified for a short moment, before her eyes narrowed and she let out a disapproving hiss. “What’s that on your neck?” she asked.

“What?”

“I’m not stupid, Credence,” Ma said, walked up to him and slapped him across the face. It took a moment for the pain to register. Credence stumbled backwards and raised his arms in front of his face to protect himself from potential follow-up slaps. “You have love-bites on your neck,” Ma spit. “You’ve been sinning. Did you see that man again?”

“I don’t know what you mean,” Credence protested. “I never saw Alex again and I didn’t…”

“Stop lying to me,” she snarled. “Get the belt.”

“Ma, please,” he sobbed. “I didn’t...I don’t have hickeys...I don’t know what happened…”

“I’m only going to say it one more time,” Ma interrupted him mercilessly. “ _Get the belt_.”

  

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warnings:  
> Non-consensual blood drinking  
> Implied physical abuse  
> Gellert Grindelwald is very unprofessional and manipulative
> 
> If you liked the Grindelwald moodboard, Sunset posted it on his [tumblr](https://binary-suunset.tumblr.com/post/167125275849/chapter-4-of-a-piece-of-the-night-my-collab-with) so you can reblog to your heart's content.


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the brief delay between chapters. Between NaNoWriMo, finals, and the holidays, it took me a while to finish this, and Annette and I wanted to work on some other fics while this chapter was being written. I hope it did not disappoint!  
> -Sunset

Graves had known something was wrong for what felt like an hour now. Even with his powers being as dull as they were, there was something about misery that hung in the air like miasma. With his dulled abilities, it was impossible to pinpoint exactly where it was coming from. He’d tried to distract himself by flipping through a few favourite books, and it worked, at least for a time.

That was until Graves’ concentration was broken by a faint knock at his door.  He almost didn’t believe it was real at first, it was so quiet.

He got up to check anyway, almost on impulse, and his heart nearly stopped when he saw what was on the other side of the door.

It was Credence, positively _reeking_ of vampire, his face streaked with tears and his hands an absolutely bloody mess.

The young man stiffened, trying to wipe tears from his eyes. “I… I didn’t know where else to go… I hope I didn’t wake you up…”

“I wouldn’t have cared if you had.” Graves gestured to the inside of his house. “Come on, let’s get you patched up, and you can tell me what happened if you’re comfortable.”

Credence sniffed and wiped his eyes with the back of his hand, leaving a faint red tinge of blood in its wake. He took a step forward and into Graves’ house. “Thank you.” His voice was barely more than a whisper.

Graves lead him to the sofa and let him take a seat. He took a box of tissues from the coffee table and gently wiped the tears from Credence’s face. “I’ll be right back with a first aid kit to patch you up.”

Credence nodded. “Thank you.”

Graves went into the kitchen and grabbed the first aid kit from under the sink. It was fairly well-stocked with bandages and even an instant ice pack. He put the box on the counter, knowing he’d definitely need it to take care of Credence.

With how great his injuries were, though, Graves figured it would probably be best to heal it as quickly as possible. The bruises he couldn’t really do anything about, but the cuts on his hands? That was something he could fix.

Graves grabbed a plastic cup and a small square of seran wrap. He placed the wrap over the opening of the cup and secured the thing together with a rubber band. It was makeshift and imperfect, but it would have to do.

Graves extended his fangs and bit down on the surface of the seran wrap, letting the clear venom catch in the cup below. He filled the rest of the thing with water and mixed it with a spoon.

It was nowhere near enough to turn him, but vampire venom had some impressive healing properties. Poor Credence certainly deserved the help after everything he’d gone through.

Graves grabbed the first aid kit and the cup and brought it back to the living room.

Credence was still on the sofa, trying to wipe the blood from his hands with a tissue with little success.

Graves put the first aid kit on the coffee table and opened it up, grabbing a cotton ball and dipping it in the solution. He held a hand out for the young man. “Here, let me help you with that.”

Credence gently put his hand on Graves’ without a second thought. It stirred something inside Percy, knowing that Credence trusted him so completely.

He hoped to never break that trust.

Graves got to work gently rubbing the cotton ball over Credence’s wounds and watched them shrink and fade away into little silver scars, as the boy avoided looking at his own hands. He still wrapped each hand up with some sterile gauze, since some of the larger cuts might take a few minutes to stop bleeding.

“There we go. We’ll change the gauze later today to prevent infection, and you should be right as rain.” Graves looked him over, checking for other injuries. “Are you in pain anywhere else?”

Credence craned his neck and gestured to a small, purple-black blotch on the side of his neck. To the untrained eye, it might’ve just looked like a hickey, but Graves knew better. The two small puncture wounds near the centre gave away the wound’s true nature.

He’d been attacked by a vampire. Well, that explained the smell.

“It hurts.”

“I’m not surprised, it’s one nasty-looking bruise.” He took the ice pack from the first aid kit and held it to Credence’s neck. “Unfortunately, it’s not a cut, so there’s not too much I can do. Just hold the ice pack to it, and it should start to fade. How long ago did you get it?”

He knew he’d messed up the moment Credence’ eyes started to fill with tears. “That’s the thing. I don’t remember. No matter how hard I try, I just…”

He must have been hypnotised into having his memory erased. Whoever had attacked him was intent on keeping him alive for some reason. Interesting.

Graves ran a hand through his hair and shushed him in an attempt to comfort him. “It’s alright. I just wanted to know if it was fresh so I could tell you when it would go away, but if you don’t know, I won’t push you. We’ll talk about it once you’ve healed up some, if you’re comfortable doing so.”

“Thank you,” Credence muttered, but his voice was slightly more confident.

“You can take all the time you need to recover.” He grabbed a throw blanket and wrapped it around the boy’s frail form. “Stay the whole night if you need to.”

“But my mother--”

Graves held his hand up. “Your mother’s the one who did this to you, isn’t she?” His eyes flicked to the bruise on Credence’s neck. “Or at least, most of it.”

Credence nodded.

“Like Hell I’m sending you back, then! Let me worry about Mary Lou. You focus on getting better, alright?”

“I can’t just… let it go, Percy! She might accuse you of kidnapping me or find some other way of getting you in trouble, and...” He took a deep breath. “I don’t want to lose you.”

“You aren’t going to lose me, I can promise you that much. I have more tools in my belt than you realise.” He winked. “I’m going to turn in now, but if you’re having trouble sleeping, feel free to browse the library and help yourself to anything in the kitchen.”

“Except your beer?”

“Except my beer.”

 

* * *

 

 

Graves knew it was morning once he heard Credence rustling about in the kitchen. He quickly changed clothes and walked over to greet him.

“Is it morning already?” he asked.

Credence was in the kitchen, rifling through the cabinets and presumably looking for something to eat. He froze as soon as he heard Percy’s voice.

“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to wake you up.”

“Hey, I said you could help yourself, and I meant it. But if you want me to cook you something, I could do that if you want. You deserve a rest after everything you’ve been through.”

Graves hadn’t cooked in a few years, and he wasn’t sure he was particularly good at it, but if it would make Credence happy and comfortable, it would be worth it.

“I’d appreciate it, thank you.” He stood up and grabbed the tin of coffee from the counter. Graves wanted to tell him that he didn’t have to, but he seemed pretty determined.

Graves pulled up a recipe for pancakes on his phone. It had been a while since he’d cooked anything, but he’d be willing to try for Credence.

He’d overmixed the batter and burned the first few, before figuring out when to flip them. They were flat and less than perfect, and he served them to Credence with a bashful grin.

“I don’t have any syrup, so we’ll have to settle with butter and sugar, I guess. Sorry.”

“Don’t be. But, uh, maybe I should do the cooking next time.” Credence chuckled and speared a couple of the better-looking and put it on his plate. He then grabbed a couple mugs from the counter. “I made some coffee, if you want any. I wasn’t sure how you liked it.”

Graves poured a bit of cream and sugar in his coffee and then took a sip. “Thank you, Credence. This is lovely.”

They ate in a comfortable silence until only a few scraps of the burnt pancakes were left. Graves put the dishes in the sink and sat back across from Credence. His gaze flicked from Credence’s hands to the mark on his neck. It had faded some, but it was still dark.

“Do you want me to change your dressing? See if your cuts have healed?”

Credence nodded slowly.

Graves grabbed a pair of kitchen scissors and gently snipped at the gauze, letting it fall away. It was still a bit bloody from where some of the wounds had taken longer to heal. Aside from that, the wounds on his hands had pretty much closed up.

Credence flexed his hand, watching in disbelief as the wound remained an angry red, but stayed sealed. “What did you clean them with last night?”

“Diluted tea tree oil. Works wonders on cuts. And as mouthwash.”

Credence flexed his hand again. “Oh. I hadn’t thought of that.”

“I don’t blame you. It’s kinda witchy, hippie shit. But it works.” Graves wrapped his hands around Credence’s. They were so slender in his own, so delicate. “Is it okay if I do this?”

Credence nodded. “It’s kind of nice, actually.”

He rubbed his thumb around Credence’s knuckles. “You know you’re safe here, right?”

Credence eyes him suspiciously. “Yeah…”

“I’d like to know what happened last night, if you’re willing to tell me.”

“I knew this was coming.” Credence sighed. “Look, I hardly even remember what happened. One second I was with Gellert and then… I don’t even know. Everything’s a blur, like if you’ve been drinking too much, I guess. Then Ma saw the mark on my neck and…”

He didn’t finish. He didn’t have to.

But that wasn’t what Graves was focusing on. “Who’s Gellert?” It had come out far more panicked than he’d intended.

“My counsellor. I told you we were meeting after hours.”

If Graves had a beating heart it would have stopped in his chest.

He was supposed to be dead. Graves had been the one to drive the blade in himself. But there was no way…

The technique. The name. It couldn’t be a coincidence.

He tried to keep his voice restrained, but he couldn’t help but let the desperation he was feeling slip into his tone. “Credence, you need to stay away from that man.”

“I’m… sorry. Aren’t you the one who wanted me to see a counsellor?”

“I did. I still do but…” He groaned. “Look, it’s a long story, but he is a bad _bad_ man. I didn’t think he’d be preying on fucking _school children_.”

Credence removed his hands from Graves’. “What's going on? Why do you know him?”

“Look I…” He bit his fist. “I know this is going to sound insane. Like _completely_ fucking insane—“

“You’re starting to scare me.”

“I don’t want to, Credence, but you deserve to know the truth.”

Credence crossed his arms. “And what is that?”

“He’s a vampire.”

Credence gaped at him. “Are you fucking shitting me? All this buildup and he just has some sort of weird blood fetish?”

“No, like, a real blood-sucking creature of the night!”

“You’re insane!”

“I told you it would sound insane!”

Credence threw his hands up. “Well you’re right!”

Graves sighed. “Look.” He did a quick google search on his phone, pulled up the image of a painting, and handed it to Credence. “Is this the man you saw last night?”

Credence’s eyes widened. “How did you…”

“This portrait is from 1790, and it’s on display in an art museum in Switzerland.” He grabbed his phone again and pulled up another image. “Here’s another photograph from almost 200 years later. During World War Two.”

Credence’s nose wrinkled. “Are you telling me he was a Nazi?”

“Yup. And a feudal lord. We have records of him going back to the 1000’s, though he might be even older.”

Credence sighed and put the phone down. “Why do you know all this?”

Graves flashed his fangs. “Because he hurt me too.”

Credence drew back in shock. “What the fuck!?”

“Credence, please don’t be afraid of me. I never asked to be like this. I’m not like him.”

“Prove it.” Credence stood up. “I want to trust you, Percy, I do, but…” He fingered the mark on his neck.

“I understand.” Graves opened the refrigerator and opened up the bottom drawer. “This is what I’ve been surviving on.” He put a bag of blood on the table. “It’s why I work at the hospital. It tastes awful and it dulls my powers, but it’s better than having to hurt people.”

Credence raised an eyebrow. “Why don’t all vampires do this?”

“I don’t know. I guess it’s not easy to find chilled blood, and you can’t exactly stockpile it, since it goes bad after a month. And some of us are just sick fucks who love the thrill of the hunt too much to give it up.” Graves took the seat beside Credence. “I’m not going to lie, it’s not exactly sunshine and daisies, and if you wanted me to leave you alone, I would.”

Credence wrapped his arms around Graves’ shoulders and pulled him close. “Please don’t leave me alone.”

“No, that’s not…” He gently pet Credence’s hair. “I’m saying there’s an out, if you want one. If this ugly part of myself is too much for you, you just have to ask and I’ll make you forget it. I’ll just go back to being your neighbour.”

Graves felt Credence shake his head. “I don’t want to. I never want to forget anything like that ever again.”

“I understand.”

 

* * *

 

 

They’d ended up spending most of that day on the couch, watching movies on Netflix. They’d switch off between who chose, but Graves tended to ask Credence’s advice during his turn. Partially because he hadn’t heard of most of these films and partially because he didn’t want to put anything on that would make him uncomfortable.

By the time the sun sunk below the horizon, they’d maratonned all of Stranger Things and cried at the end of Rogue One (the latter had come with the realisation that Credence had never seen the original Star Wars trilogy, which had frankly shocked Graves, who’d stood in line at midnight to watch The Empire Strikes Back the day it premiered).

Once the credits finished rolling on the final episode, Graves looked to Credence. “You wanna see something cool?”

Credence raised an eyebrow. “Is it a vampire thing?”

“Sort of. But it’s a fun one.”

“Being a vampire is fun?” He asked sardonically.

“Parts of it are, anyway.” He looked Credence in the eye, stood up, and transformed into a large black dog.

Credence laughed. “Oh my god, is that you?”

Graves nodded and hopped onto the couch beside Credence.

“You know my mom would never let me have a dog. Even though I wanted one. One of my foster families had a big golden retriever. I remember Ewan used to say he’d go through Hell and high water for me.” He scratched Percy behind the ears.

He let out a long whine and nuzzled closer to Credence. His dog brain was going wild at the familiar touch and the happiness had just completely overtaken him. That’s why he always liked his dog form. It lived such a simple life and took such pleasure in simple things.

After being pet for a while, Graves changed back into his human form, his head still in Credence’s lap.

“So, can you, like, turn into a bat? Like Dracula?”

“Dracula could turn into much more than a bat,” Graves corrected. “In theory, I should be able to transform into anything, but because of the blood I’ve been drinking, my options are pretty limited.”

“Oh. What else do you turn into?”

“I like my dog form, so that’s usually what I stick with. Sometimes I’ll go for a crow or a squirrel if I have to do something that relies on stealth. I was a cat for six months one time. I’ve never been more thankful to have object permanence since, I can tell you that much.”

Credence laughed. “So you really do have an animal’s mind when you transform.”

“Sort of. I still have my consciousness and I can still think, but there’s still a dumb dog brain in there that wants to be pet all day and bark at the postman.”

“I just cannot imagine you barking at a postman. You just seem… I don’t know… like too much of an adult.”

“That’s why I call it the dumb dog brain. I’m sure you’ll learn to love it. I’ve been told I’m more tolerable as a dog than as a person sometimes.” Graves looked at the clock. “Anyway, I think we should be taking you back home. I’ll charm your mother so she won’t remember about your bite.”

“Thank you.”

Graves smiled and ruffled Credence’s hair. “No problem. I’ll see you at church tomorrow too, if I’m still invited.”

“Of course you are. But I think we still need that sink fixed.”

 

* * *

 

 

With Credence somewhat safe at home, Percy was finally able to rest easily.

Well, not exactly easily. There was still the issue of Grindelwald being on the loose. As long as he was still around, no one could be truly safe.

Graves pulled out his phone and typed out a familiar number with a Michigan area code. He held the phone to his ear as the answering machine played.

“Hey, it’s Graves. He’s back.”


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey everyone! I'm posting this in Annette's stead. She's having a bit of a difficult time right now in her personal life (I'm not going to give any details and please don't pester her for any either), so if you could just send her some good vibes either in the comments or through her tumblr [askbox](https://almost-annette.tumblr.com/ask), that would be awesome!
> 
> Anyway, please enjoy the chapter she wrote for y'all!  
> -Sunset
> 
> (Chapter-specific warnings in the ending note)

Credence had just lived through the strangest day of his life. He’d learned he’d been attacked by a vampire, his new neighbor had turned out to be  _ another _ vampire, and, to top it all off, said neighbor had hypnotized his adoptive mother into forgetting that Credence had not been home for a whole day.

Ma had only stared at him with a slightly vacant expression for a moment, then she had smiled and said she’d hoped he’d had fun. Credence had immediately gone into his room, because Ma being friendly to him? That was almost as disturbing as her being livid. The hickey on his neck had not even merited a comment from her.

Then again, it wasn’t exactly a hickey, was it? Credence rubbed over the spot on his neck where he knew Gellert must have bitten him. He grimaced. Even though his memory had been erased, he still felt sick when he thought of what must have happened, as though his body remembered what his mind could not.

Credence laid down on his bed and pulled out his phone. Percy had said that Gellert had hurt him, too, but that he didn’t want to talk about it.

He’d also asked Percy to tell him more about Gellert’s past, with the goal of getting him to reveal more information about himself. Percy, however, had seen right through him. He had not been very forthcoming and had only given Credence three names: Bela Orlok, Gellért Németh and Gerhard Lander. According to Percy, all three of them were pseudonyms that Gellert had used over the centuries.

Credence googled the first name on the list. He found a Wikipedia article and started reading. Bela Orlok had been a military commander under Vlad III, fighting against the Ottoman Empire. Several historians suggested that the atrocities commonly attributed to Vlad III had actually been committed by Orlok. Credence shuddered at the picture of a woodcut, depicting impaled individuals. Apart from that, not a lot was known about the medieval warrior, except that contemporary sources described him as having “fair hair” and being of “slender and unusually tall stature”. His enemies used to call him “the blue-eyed devil”.

Credence googled the next name. Gellért Németh had been an accomplice of Countess Elizabeth Báthory and had been convicted along with her. According to the testimonies of the witnesses, he had committed just as many murders as Báthory had. Although no portraits existed of Gellért Németh, the sources described him as a tall, slim man in his early twenties, with blond hair and blazing blue eyes. He’d been connected to the Hungarian nobility and thus, he had escaped the death penalty. His punishment had been immurement. However, only a week after he’d been imprisoned, the wardens knocked down the wall, because there were no more signs of life from Németh. Supposing he had committed suicide, they were shocked to find the room completely empty.

Credence’s eyebrows shot up, but then he remembered that vampires could transform into whichever shape they wanted, if they drank enough human blood. Of  _ course _ such abilities could be used to escape justice if you had no morals. Now that he thought about it, he was surprised that Gellert had even let himself be put on trial.

He frowned and noticed he’d been unconsciously running his fingers back and forth over the bite mark. With a shiver, he pulled his hand back and moved on to the last name on the list. Credence hesitated to type it, anxious of what he might find. If the stories about Orlok’s and Németh’s crimes were not exaggerated (and Credence doubted they were), Gellert was truly a monster.

He thought of the woodcut once more and closed his eyes, fighting down a bout of sickness.

With shaking fingers, he searched for the last name on the list – Gerhard Lander. Contrary to the other two names, the Wikipedia article for this name had a photograph attached to it. The photograph was a rather old, black-and-white picture, but Credence recognized the man immediately. It was Gellert Grindelwald, looking not a day younger than he had on Friday.

However, instead of a T-shirt and a leather jacket, this Gellert – or Gerhard, Credence supposed – was wearing a black uniform with two lightning-shaped insignia on his right collar patch and a white skull on his cap. He looked haughty and defiant, with a slight sneer on his face. Reluctantly, Credence scrolled further down.

_ “’Dr. Death’ Gerhard Lander in SS uniform, 1942” _ , the caption read.

Gerhard Lander had been a doctor in the largest Nazi concentration camp and had exploited his position in the most gruesome ways possible.

After the war had ended, his surviving “patients” had gone on record to say that Lander had performed all kinds of twisted surgeries and experiments on them. He’d injected with unknown substances, even going so far as to surgically remove organs from them, just to take notes of their death struggle afterwards.

He had also had a barrack to himself, in which he placed “’special’ patients”. Nobody except for him had been allowed to enter those barracks and he only performed experiments there during nighttime.

No records of Lander’s secret experiments survived, because he himself set fire to the entire barrack – prisoners still inside – in late 1944, when the Red Army was already getting dangerously close to the camp.

After the war, it was assumed that Lander had fled to Argentina, using the pseudonym “Fritz Kürten”. There were no more records of him after 1953 and he was presumed dead.

A couple of sketches were attached to the article, which showed how Lander might look like if he were still alive today. Credence shivered, because he knew the sketches weren’t necessary. “Dr. Death” still looked like the photograph at the beginning of the article. The only difference was that he’d traded in the black uniform for ripped jeans and a leather jacket and the arrogant sneer for a fake attitude of helpfulness.

Nobody would ever suspect that a twenty-something high school counselor was the same person as an infamous war criminal.

Credence put down his phone and touched the bite mark again. Having read about the atrocities Gellert had committed in the past, Credence knew that he’d gotten off easy. Gellert was obviously not squeamish when it came to killing people…what had been the phrase used in the article?  _ ‘Lander was known to kill prisoners out of sadism, boredom or a combination of both’ _ .

Now that same man was working with impressionable teenagers. Credence doubted he’d been the first student Gellert had tricked. On the contrary, that scheme probably worked well for him. He pretended to be understanding when students told him of their personal problems and then he would suggest a meeting after office hours. He supposed it wasn’t very hard for Gellert to get the students to trust him, after all, Credence himself had done so, with horrific consequences.

Credence changed into his pajamas. It was already late, but try as he might, sleep wouldn’t come for a long time. When he finally fell asleep, he had nightmares of Gellert.

In the morning, Credence felt more exhausted than when he’d gone to bed. Perpetually yawning, he made his way down to the breakfast table.

Ma greeted him with a cheerful “Good morning!” which was completely out of character for her. Percy’s hypnosis must still be in effect, then.

Credence took his seat at the table. Modesty was busy shoveling cornflakes into her mouth, but Chastity fixed him with a scrutinizing glare.

“You’re not looking good, Cre,” she pointed out.

“I’m just tired, that’s all,” Credence replied and poured himself a cup of coffee. He’d need the caffeine if he didn’t want to fall asleep at church.

“And what did you do with Mr. Graves yesterday that was so… _ tiring _ ?” she said and raised a challenging eyebrow.

“ _ Chas _ ,” he hissed and pointedly looked at Ma, who still seemed unperturbed. However, he didn’t want to risk anything that would make Percy’s hypnosis wear off.

“Speaking of Mr. Graves,” Ma began. “I’m going to ask him if he wants to come to church with us today. He’s new in town and if we introduce him to the congregation, he’s going to make the right sort of acquaintances.”

Credence and Chastity both mumbled “Yes, Ma”, while Credence resisted the urge to roll his eyes. If Ma only knew…

Modesty, on the other hand, blurted out: “Didn’t he live in  _ Las Vegas _ ?”

“Yes, he did,” Ma snapped. “Even more reason to introduce him to decent people, don’t you think? Vegas is a hotbed of sin…but just because he lived there, doesn’t mean he’s…he’s…,” she stammered.

Credence was fascinated and a little frightened at the same time. He made a mental note to ask Percy how the hypnosis worked. At the moment, it looked as though Ma’s own prejudicial beliefs were warring against the nicer, friendlier attitude Percy had tried to instill into her.

“He’s a good man,” Ma finally finished.

Chastity shot Credence a surprised look and mouthed “What?”

Credence shrugged his shoulders. He could understand his sister’s confusion. Ma rarely called anyone a good person.

To distract himself, Credence took another sip of coffee. As he swallowed, a chilling thought crossed his mind. Percy had said he survived on donated blood. If Percy’s already dulled abilities were still enough to make Ma change her mind, for God’s sake, what would  _ Gellert _ be able to do?

They finished breakfast and got ready for church. Credence put on a turtleneck sweater. Usually, he hated that particular sweater, but it hid the bite mark. Even though it had faded somewhat, it still bore striking resemblance to a hickey. The entire congregation knew about Credence’s fling with Alex and people still used to send looks of disgust in his direction, no need to add fuel to the fire.

When they went over to Percy’s, Credence was pleasantly surprised to discover that Percy was not dressed in his usual morning outfit of sweatpants and washed-out band shirt. He was about to crack a joke about how he hadn’t expected Percy to even own a pair of slacks and a dress shirt, but bit his tongue just in time.

After church, Percy invited them for lunch and picked up the check. When Ma had tried to protest, he’d given her a long look. “It’s my treat,” he’d insisted.

Ma had turned beet-red and only recovered after noticing that all three of her adoptive children were giving her weird looks.

Once they were home, Ma ushered her children inside, while she stayed outside and tried to engage Percy in conversation as best as he could. From the forced smile on his face, it didn’t seem to be working as well as she hoped.

“What do you think of that?” Chastity asked her siblings and pointed out of the kitchen window to where Ma and Percy were speaking.

“I don’t like it,” Credence said thoughtlessly.

“Yeah, you wouldn’t,” Chastity snorted.

Credence glared at her.

“Are Ma and Mr. Graves going to get married?” Modesty asked.

“What?” Credence hissed. “Why would you think that?”

“I think Ma likes him,” she said.

“I don’t think Ma is Mr. Graves’ type,” Chastity interjected, while she pointedly looked at Credence. Thankfully, it went over Modesty’s head. “I know you like him, but he’s not going to become our stepdad, Moddy. Go play. Let the grown-ups have conversation.”

Credence watched Modesty retreat to her room, grumbling under her breath about her siblings. “The grown-ups?” he said and turned to Chastity. “Really? Chas, you’re  _ fourteen _ .”

“But I have much more experience when it comes to living with Ma. I was adopted when I was seven, I’ve been living with her almost as twice as long as you have,” she countered. “Cre, you need to be more careful.”

“I-I don’t know what you mean,” he stammered, feigning confusion.

“I’m talking about your completely obvious crush on Mr. Graves,” Chastity said.

“I’m not crushing on him,” Credence said. However, his face grew hot and he knew that his blush must be betraying him. He liked Percy, there was no denying that.

“Sure,” Chastity drawled. “You’re a shit liar, Credence.”

“Language, Chas,” Credence said. “Don’t let Ma hear you say that.”

She rolled her eyes. “What she doesn’t know can’t hurt her,” she scoffed. “Anyway, who’s going to tell her?  _ You _ ?”

“Of course not,” he sighed. “And you’re right, I like him.”

“That’s nothing I didn’t know already,” Chastity replied and crossed her arms in front of her chest. The look she gave him looked oddly like Ma when she tried to intimidate him. Credence, however, was not scared of Chastity.

“What do you want me to do about it? It’s not like I can just decide not to be attracted to him any longer.”

“Tone it down when somebody else is around,” she suggested. “People at church were already giving us strange looks. Also, I overheard Mrs. Daubenspeck whispering to Mrs. Burbage that Ma ought to keep an eye on you. I guess they thought Mr. Graves was Ma’s boyfriend.”

Credence grimaced. Chastity tried to stifle her laugh.

“Look, you and I both remember what consequences your last relationship had,” Chastity began. Privately, Credence thought she was being generous by calling it a relationship. “I don’t know what that guy promised you…”

“His name’s Alex,” Credence threw in and fidgeted a little. “He said he and his wife had an open relationship.”

“Which turned out to be a lie,” Chastity said firmly. “So he pretended to care about you, but did he ever talk to you again after his wife discovered that he was cheating on her with you? Did he ever check to make sure you were okay?”

Credence slowly shook his head. He’d never heard from him again. For all his declarations of how much he liked Credence, Alex hadn’t acted as though Credence had meant anything to him, even just as a friend.

“Cre, I just don’t want you to get hurt again,” Chastity said in a low, imploring voice. “We’ve only known Mr. Graves for a week. We don’t yet know what he’s like.”

Credence felt compelled to defend Percy, but stopped himself. It wouldn’t help his argument and only make Chastity further convinced that he was too far gone to acknowledge her doubts.

Chastity had a point, but she wouldn’t be able to change his opinion. He could come up with hundreds of clumsy metaphors, but the point he tried to make was the same – with Percy, everything felt  _ right _ .

Credence felt understood and accepted in a way he hadn’t felt in years, not since he’d been taken away from his last foster family. He also couldn’t deny that he felt wanted when he was with Percy. So far, they hadn’t even kissed, but Credence had spent more time than he’d care to admit wondering what sex with Percy would be like.

“I’m being careful,” Credence finally said. “But I’m not going to stay away from him, either.”

“I figured,” Chastity replied. “He’s the one who took care of your hands,” she added.

“How do you know?”

“I’m not completely stupid,” she said. “I was still awake when you came home Friday night. After Ma went to bed and fell asleep, I sneaked to the medicine cabinet to get antiseptics and dressings. I went to your room, but you weren’t there. Then I checked whether the lights were on in Mr. Graves’ house and I put two and two together.”

“You figure stuff out way too quickly,” Credence said, before another thought occurred to him: “You were going to help me with my wounds?”

“That’s not the point,” Chastity said. “Like I said before, I don’t want you to get hurt again. Whether that means getting your heart broken by our hot neighbor – who’s twice your age, by the way – or getting a beating from Ma because she caught you associating with said neighbor…”

“I wasn’t…”

“Cre, you have a hickey. That’s probably why Ma freaked out in the first place. I really don’t want to know what you and Mr. Graves get up to when you’re alone, but at least tell him not to leave marks.”

“He didn’t…”

“Come on, I could clearly see it this morning,” Chastity said without letting him speak. “I mean, he must know that Ma freaked out because she saw the hickey on your neck. Taking care of your wounds is the least he can do, but did he apologize?”

“Chas, that mark wasn’t from Percy,” Credence said quickly.

Chastity’s eyes widened until they appeared to be twice their usual size. “Credence, are you trying to tell me what I think you’re telling me? The way I see it, you hooked up with some guy and then ran to Mr. Graves to patch you up,” she said.

“I didn’t hook up with anyone,” he said quietly. “It’s not even a hickey, it’s—,“ he broke off. How should he go about explaining that he’d been attacked by a century-old vampire? That said vampire was a war criminal, who’d been killing people for fun for centuries? “Promise me you won’t tell anything of what I’m going to tell you to anyone else,” he began cautiously.

“Credence, what are you…?”

“Promise me,” he repeated.

Chastity blinked, confused. “I promise.”

“I wasn’t hooking up with anyone,” he said. “I was meeting with one of my school’s counselors.”

“Oh,” she breathed. “That’s good, isn’t it? But why did he meet with you outside of school?”

He anxiously rubbed his neck. “It’s not good,” Credence said. “He…I think he drugged me. I don’t really know what he did to me, but I woke up with this mark on my neck.”

“Shit,” she said. “Are you okay? Did you think of going to the police?”

Credence shrugged. If he was being honest, he doubted the police would help him. He hadn’t had the best experiences with the authorities so far.

“You need to report him!” Chastity said in a shrill voice. “He has to lose his job. What if he keeps doing this…”

“I  _ can’t _ ,” he said and hung his head low. “Who would believe me? It’s my own fault, anyway. I was stupid enough to trust him…”

“Did you tell Mr. Graves?” she interrupted him.

“Yes,” he admitted.

“And what did he say? I’m sure he also told you to report that counselor!”

Credence thought back to yesterday, how Percy had revealed that Gellert was a vampire, that he was a vampire, too, hiding in plain sight of everyone. What had been the exact words he’d used? A blood-sucking creature of the night. He could hardly report Gellert for vampirism, he’d be written off as insane if he did. “Something like that, yeah,” he replied evasively. “Just…I’m scared and confused, okay? I don’t even know what happened to me, I…give me time, please.”

“Alright,” she said. “But I won’t forget about this. At least the middle school counselors are only useless and not outright dangerous.”

“ _ You  _ spoke with the counselors, too?”

“Of course!” she said. “They told me to tell you to try not to make Ma angry. Then I told them that they obviously haven’t met Ma if they think that’s good advice. Fucking useless,” she muttered.

Credence suddenly felt a lump in his throat. “Thanks, Chas,” he said quietly.

In the afternoon, Credence tried to catch up on his schoolwork, but he couldn’t concentrate. He was failing to comprehend an equation in his physics notes, which he was sure he needed for his homework. He couldn’t make sense of the variables. In Credence’s opinion, math had stopped being fun when they’d introduced the letters.

He was chewing on his pencil, trying to think back to Mr. Scamander’s explanations, but nothing came to mind.

Suddenly, a realization hit him and he felt as though he’d been plunged into ice water.

School.

He would have to go to school tomorrow. He would have to go where Gellert was.

His lunch was threatening to make a sudden reappearance and shivers of dread ran up and down his spine.

Credence did the only thing he could think of. He went over to see Percy.

Percy looked pleasantly surprised to see him when he opened the door, but after half a second, his expression morphed into one of concern. “What’s wrong?” he asked as he led Credence into his living room.

Credence took a deep breath, before he met Percy’s eyes with a determined expression. “Percy, can I ask you to do something for me?”

“Anything,” Percy replied almost immediately.

“I want you to teach me how to resist Gellert’s vampire powers.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warnings:  
> Brief descriptions of war crimes  
> Brief descriptions of Nazi atrocities

**Author's Note:**

> Come visit us on tumblr!  
> [Binary_Sunset (Graves)](https://binary-suunset.tumblr.com/)  
> [ almostannette (Credence)](https://almost-annette.tumblr.com/)


End file.
